Legendary striker Lionel Messi has revealed he has no plans to retire anytime soon, insisting he has “more years ahead of him”, saying he is open to taking part in the 2026 World Cup.
Messi is widely regarded as the greatest footballer of all time, cementing that legacy in recent years with a FIFA World Cup and two Copa America triumphs with Argentina. At 37, after winning everything there is to win in football (twice as much), and having left Europe to ply his trade with Inter Miami in MLS, Messi should hang up his boots the most as soon as possible.
Fears that Messi could soon retire were heightened last week after his stunning hat-trick in a 6-0 win over Bolivia. Speaking after the vintage outing, Messi admitted that October’s recent international matches could be among his ‘last’ for Argentina.
The striker has since clarified his statement at an awards ceremony on Thursday, insisting that while he is not targeting an appearance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, he intends to play a few more years. “ Arriving at Inter Miami does not mean that I will retire soon, I still have many years ahead of me”Messi told Spanish newspaper Marca.
“We’ll see.” I don’t like speeding up time or looking forward. I try to enjoy every day. I hope I can continue playing at this level to feel good and be happy. When I do what I love, I am happy. I attach more importance to this than to participating in the 2026 World Cup. I have not set myself the goal of participating in the World Cup, but rather of living day to day and being well“, he adds.
If Messi plays in the 2026 World Cup, he will aim to become the first player to lift the World Cup as captain of his country twice. If Italy and Brazil have already won two consecutive World Cups, they did so with different skippers: Gianpiero Combi (1934) and Giuseppe Meazza (1938) for Italy, and Hilderaldo Bellini (1958) and Mauro Ramos (1962) for Brazil.
Morocco
Related News :